Forgery in Arizona: ARS 13-2002

Posted on January 31, 2026 in Assault & Violent Crimes

Under Arizona law, forgery involves altering a written document with the intent to defraud another person. 

A common example of forgery is trying to cash a check with a forged signature. Other common examples include creating fake prescriptions for medications or filling out unauthorized applications for credit using another person’s personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, a conviction for forgery is classified as a Class 4 or Class 3 felony in Arizona.

In this blog post, we examine forgery crimes in Arizona. Specifically, we cover:

• The elements of the offense
  
• Penalties for a forgery conviction
  
• Defenses to a charge of forgery

AZ Defenders represents clients charged with criminal law violations in Arizona, including non-violent offenses such as forgery charges.

To speak with a seasoned, experienced criminal defense trial lawyer in a free consultation, call us at (480) 456-6400 or use our contact form.

How Does Arizona Law Define Forgery?

Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) 13-2002 is the state law that defines the offense of forgery:

Forgery; classification; definitions

A. A person commits forgery if, with intent to defraud, the person:

1. Falsely makes, completes or alters a written instrument; or

2. Knowingly possesses a forged instrument; or

3. Offers or presents, whether accepted or not, a forged instrument or one that contains false information.

B. The possession of five or more forged instruments may give rise to an inference that the instruments are possessed with an intent to defraud.

C. Forgery is a class 4 felony, including if the forged instrument is a gift card, except that if the forged instrument is used in connection with the purchase, lease or renting of a dwelling that is used as a drop house it is a class 3 felony.

D. For the purposes of this section:

1. “Drop house” means property that is used to facilitate smuggling pursuant to section 13-2319.

2. “Gift card” has the same meaning prescribed in section 13-1813.

Additional Forgery Definitions

This base statute is subject to additional definitions contained in another statute, ARS 13-2001, which provides the following information:

Written instrument: A written instrument can be any paper, document, or other instrument containing written or printed matter, or any token, stamp, seal, badge, trademark, graphical image, access device, or other evidence or symbol of value, right, privilege, or identification.

Checks, deeds, bearer bank notes, paper currency, and contracts are examples of instruments.

A written instrument can be complete or incomplete.

• A complete written instrument is one that purports to be genuine and fully drawn concerning all its essential features.
  
• An incomplete written instrument is one that needs additional information, including but not limited to a signature, to make it complete.

Forged instrument: This is a written instrument that has been falsely made, completed, or altered.

• An instrument is falsely made when a person makes or draws a written instrument that purports to be authentic, but is not authentic because the maker of the note is fictitious, or if the maker of the note is real, then that person did not authorize the making or drawing of the instrument.
  
• An instrument is falsely completed when the act of completing the written instrument is done by adding, inserting, or changing matter without the permission of anyone entitled to give that permission, so that the newly completed instrument falsely appears or purports to be an authentic creation of its supposed maker, or is authorized by that person.
  
• A complete or incomplete written instrument is falsely altered when, without the permission of anyone entitled to give permission, it is changed by counterfeiting, washing, erasure, obliteration, deletion, insertion of new matter, or connecting together different parts of the whole of more than one genuine instrument or transposition of matter or in any other manner, so that the altered instrument falsely appears or purports to be an authentic creation of its ostensible maker or authorized by him.

Intent to Defraud Required

Many times, people think of forgery as mimicking another person’s signature on a document, which is one form of the offense. 

However, as these definitions demonstrate, the act of forgery can take many forms, including deleting information or fabricating a fake document based on existing documents. Even an instrument that has an authentic signature can still be considered a forgery if it has a forged amount or other alteration.

The key is the intent to defraud someone else, or knowingly being in possession of forged documents.

Possession of an altered or inauthentic document by itself is not forgery, as long as you do not attempt to pass it off on someone else as authentic with the intent to take advantage of that person. 

For example, you can take a check from someone else’s checkbook and write it out for a million dollars, and even mimic that person’s signature on it; as long as you never try to cash it or otherwise exchange it, then it is hard to show beyond a reasonable doubt that you have the intent to defraud.

Nonetheless, the forgery statute does treat having multiple false instruments in a way similar to how some statutes treat possession of “distribution quantities” of illegal drugs: if you have five or more forged instruments, then the law allows an inference that your intent is to commit fraud with them.

Distinguish Forgery From Other Crimes

Some other crimes involve the use of false information and instruments, but they are distinct from the crime of forgery. Examples are:

• Criminal possession of a forgery device under ARS 13-2003
  
• Obtaining a signature by deception under ARS 13-2005
  
• Identity theft crimes under ARS 13-2008
  
• Criminal impersonation under ARS 13-2006

Legal Penalties for Forgery

The basic act of forgery—intending to and attempting to defraud another person with a forged instrument—is a Class 4 felony in Arizona. This is how most cases of forgery are prosecuted in Arizona. The penalties for this class of forgery include:

• For a first-time conviction, a prison sentence of 1 to 3.75 years
  
• For a conviction with one “historical prior felony”, a sentence of 2.25 to 7.5 years
  
• For a conviction with two or more “historical prior felonies”, a sentence of 6 to 15 years

Forgery in Connection With Human Smuggling

ARS 13-2002(C) makes it a Class 3 felony to engage in forgery related to “the purchase, lease or renting of a dwelling that is used as a drop house.” The statute defines a drop house as having a connection to “smuggling” pursuant to ARS 13-2319.

When we look at ARS 13-2319, it is clear that the kind of smuggling contemplated by Arizona’s forgery law is human smuggling, particularly the transportation into the United States of people who are not United States citizens, permanent resident aliens, or persons otherwise lawfully in Arizona or have attempted to enter, entered or remained in the United States in violation of law.

If you are found guilty of using forged documents to buy, lease, or rent a dwelling used as a drop house for human smuggling, this is a Class 3 felony charge with the following potential penalties:

• For a first-time conviction, a prison sentence of 2 to 8.75 years
  
• For a conviction with one “historical prior felony”, a sentence of 3.25 to 16.25 years
  
• For a conviction with two or more “historical prior felony” convictions, a sentence of 7.5 to 25 years

Common Penalties for Class 4 and Class 3 Felonies

First-time offenders of Class 4 or Class 3 felonies are eligible for probation in lieu of a prison sentence.

A felony conviction in Arizona can also result in a financial penalty, including a fine. This can be between $4,000 and $150,000. Victim restitution is another possible sentencing outcome.

In addition, any felony conviction stays on your public record regardless of your completion of a prison sentence and payment of fines and restitution. This can have the following long-term negative consequences for you:

• Finding a job can be harder.
  
• It can be more difficult to find a place to rent.
  
• It can be harder to gain access to higher education, student loans, or student housing.
  
• You can lose some of your civil rights for a period of time, including the right to buy or possess a firearm.

Defenses to a Forgery Charge

The main defenses to forgery charges go to the intent and knowledge elements of the offense. You cannot unintentionally or unknowingly commit fraud.

• The example given above, of having a false document but no intent to use it for any purpose to defraud someone else, is one example of casting reasonable doubt on this statutory requirement.
  
• Another example is a situation in which one person has the authority to sign documents on behalf of another, but then that authorization gets revoked; if the person allegedly committing the forgery is unaware of this revocation of authority, then he or she may not knowingly be engaged in the act.
  
• Another example is when a person prepares a written instrument but accidentally puts incorrect information into it: here again, the intent to defraud or knowledge of the document’s inauthenticity is arguably lacking.

Other defenses that may be available, depending on the factual circumstances surrounding the alleged act of forgery, are being falsely accused or technical violations. Examples include:

• Not informing you of constitutional rights, such as your right to refuse to answer police questions while in custody, or your right to have a lawyer present during custodial questioning
  
• Coercing you into making a confession
  
• Use of improper police procedures that resulted in an unlawful search and seizure of the alleged forgery evidence against you
  
• The prosecution’s failure to properly keep the evidence accounted for in its chain of custody

An experienced criminal defense attorney can help you understand your defense options to a forgery charge.

Have You Been Charged With Forgery in Arizona?

Despite being a nonviolent crime, the state of Arizona still considers forgery serious enough to make it a felony offense. If you are convicted of forgery, you could spend years in prison, be subject to fines that can be hard to pay off, and suffer the long-term consequences of having a felony conviction on your public record.

Presenting the most effective defense to a prosecution for forgery depends on your criminal defense lawyer having detailed knowledge of the facts of your case and an equally firm grounding in how Arizona’s theft and forgery crimes work. 

When you hire AZ Defenders to represent you, you will have an experienced and skilled lawyer on your side.

We can explore all the available lack of intent to defraud and lack of knowledge approaches that may be available to you as a defendant in a forgery case, and investigate the facts of your case to look for any weakness in how the police conducted their procedures up to and including their decision to arrest you, and how they gathered evidence.

If you have been charged with forgery in Arizona, you can use our online contact form or call us at (480) 456-6400 to get a free consultation with an experienced Arizona forgery attorney.